Putin Fires Official Over Olympic Delays

By

Lukas I. Alpert

Updated Feb. 7, 2013 10:21 p.m. ET

MOSCOW—President Vladimir Putin fired a top Russian Olympics Committee official Thursday, a day after publicly dressing down organizers about why a ski jump complex had fallen two years behind schedule and was over budget.

Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak, who is in charge of preparations for the 2014 Winter Games, told reporters that the decision to dismiss 42-year-old Olympics Committee Vice President Akhmed Bilalov came after Mr....